Running, Donation And Jesus (but not necessarily in that order)

So what do those three things / person have in common, you might ask?  Perhaps nothing?  But for little ole me, they are three of my many passions.  And this week, I had the privilege of sharing them with others.  But I never dreamed that I would have the opportunity to share these 3 things with so many people!

For World Kidney Day (8.March.2012), I was interviewed by the regional newspaper because I had donated a kidney 3 months ago (read the article here).  My first thought was, ok, cool, but I am sure they'll bury the article on some back page between the obituaries and the rental ads.  But lo and behold, they stuck the article on the front page!  Not just on the digital version of the paper, but also on the front page of the print edition!  And not only on the front page, but above the fold, in the middle!  With a huge photo even!  Must have been a really slow news day for them!  But, hey, WOW!  God is good!  I didn't know about the print edition until some moms from the kids' school met Becky at the classroom door, holding the paper up for her to see.

We were flabbergasted, so we had to go out and buy up all the copies in our valley.  Ok, maybe it was just a few copies.  Maybe I can autograph them and sell them on TradeMe or eBay!  ;-)  Yeah, right...

But seriously, for me, it was truly an honor to be able to speak for Jesus, my Savior, my All in All.  And also to be able to promote and raise awareness for organ donation and specifically kidney transplantation (have you considered it?).  And thirdly, of course, my new-found (well, of 2 years now) passion, running (did you notice the plug for the local half-marathon event in the article ;-) ).  And all in one shot!  And to so many people - I didn't realize how widely read this regional paper is!  Woohoo!  So I guess that is my 5 minutes of fame.  Or as they say here in Kiwi-land, 'today's news, tomorrow's fish & chips wrapping paper'!  How true!  That is exactly what King Solomon said in Ecclesiastes 4.16 (NLT) ^{- '}Endless crowds stand around him, but then another generation grows up and rejects him, too. So it is all meaningless—like chasing the wind.'

Anyways, here is a quote from the website of Fairfax Media, who I think is the parent company of the Dom Post.  It details the readership of the paper.  Wow.  Praise the Lord!

"Wellington is more than New Zealand's capital city. It is a vibrant and dynamic economic, cultural and social community. This energy is reflected in The Dominion Post, Wellington's daily newspaper with 132,000 Wellingtonians aged 15+ reading The Dominion Post each day. A total of 232,000 people from across central New Zealand and Wellington turn to The Dominion Post....[which] covers the second largest metropolitan urban area in New Zealand."